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Stephen West

Beginner friendly if listened to in order! For anyone interested in an educational podcast about philosophy where you don't need to be a graduate-level philosopher to understand it. In chronological order, the thinkers and ideas that forged the world we live in are broken down and explained.

Philosophize This!

Today we talk about the philosophical themes of The Tragedy of Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare. We talk about the hypocrisy and false nostalgia of political violence. The ironies of living by a moral ideal like honor. Rhetoric as a site of where political power is won and lost in a republic. And Brutus as a unique kind of tragic hero somewhere between Stoicism and Christianity. Hope you love it. :)

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Thank you so much for listening! Could never do this without your help. 

Website: https://www.philosophizethis.org/

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/philosophizethis 

Social:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/philosophizethispodcast

X: https://twitter.com/iamstephenwest

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Episode #241 ... The Tragedy of Julius Caesar - William Shakespeare

Today we talk more about the work of Charles Taylor and his book The Varieties of Religion Today. We look at different answers to a classic question around religious belief. The sociological and structural role that religion plays at any given point in history. Paleo, Neo and Post Durkheim versions of religious society. What religion becomes in the age of authenticity we live in. We paint a picture of the very unique spiritual predicament the modern person has to navigate. Hope you love it. :)

Sponsors:

Better Help: https://www.BetterHelp.com/PHILTHIS

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Thank you so much for listening! Could never do this without your help. 

Website: https://www.philosophizethis.org/

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/philosophizethis 

Social:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/philosophizethispodcast

X: https://twitter.com/iamstephenwest

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philosophizethisshow

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Episode #240 ... Varieties of Religion Today (Charles Taylor)

Today we talk about the work of the philosopher Charles Taylor. First, we trace the historical origins of how he views the modern self. From the Greeks to the Reformation. From Descartes to Rousseau. The modern self to him is something "irreconcilably multileveled". Then we talk about our modern focus on authenticity as a moral ideal and why Taylor thinks many people misunderstand what it requires. Hope you love it! :)

Sponsors:

The Perfect Jean: https://theperfectjean.nyc Code: PT15 

Better Help: https://www.BetterHelp.com/PHILTHIS

Thank you so much for listening! Could never do this without your help. 

Website: https://www.philosophizethis.org/

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/philosophizethis 

Social:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/philosophizethispodcast

X: https://twitter.com/iamstephenwest

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philosophizethisshow

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Episode #239 ... Authenticity and the history of the self. (Charles Taylor)

Today we talk about the book Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. We talk about the mix of Romantic and Enlightenment attitudes and how it leads to problems without the proper oversight. We talk about technology and the responsibility that comes with creation. We talk about how ostracized people often learn to resent the world they live in. Hope you love it and have a great week! :)

Sponsors:

Better Help: https://www.BetterHelp.com/PHILTHIS

Nord VPN: https://nordvpn.com/philothis 

Thank you so much for listening! Could never do this without your help. 

Website: https://www.philosophizethis.org/

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/philosophizethis 

Social:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/philosophizethispodcast

X: https://twitter.com/iamstephenwest

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philosophizethisshow

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Episode #238 ... Frankenstein - Mary Shelley

Today we talk about two famous critiques of Stoicism. One by Friedrich Nietzsche who thought the Stoics weren’t life affirming enough and so rob themselves of some of the best parts of life. The other by Arthur Schopenhauer who thought the Stoics were too life-affirming of worldly things to ever reach a deep understanding of things. Hope you love it! :)

Sponsors:

ZocDoc: https://www.ZocDoc.com/PHILO

Quince: https://www.QUINCE.com/pt

Thank you so much for listening! Could never do this without your help. 

Website: https://www.philosophizethis.org/

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/philosophizethis 

Social:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/philosophizethispodcast

X: https://twitter.com/iamstephenwest

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philosophizethisshow

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Episode #237 ... The Stoics Are Wrong - Nietzsche, Schopenhauer

Today we talk about the collection of journals known as Meditations by Marcus Aurelius. We mark the differences between Stoicism, modern Stoic ethics, and the journals of Marcus Aurelius. We talk about the divine logos, indifferents, and how metaphysical assumptions ladder up into the virtue ethics of the ancient Stoics. We talk about some of the context that Marcus was writing each of these journals in. All of this while trying to relay some of the biggest ideas that he wrote about. Hope you love it. :)

Sponsors:

Nord VPN: https://nordvpn.com/philothis

Quince: https://www.QUINCE.com/pt

ZocDoc: https://www.ZocDoc.com/PHILO

Thank you so much for listening! Could never do this without your help. 

Website: https://www.philosophizethis.org/

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/philosophizethis 

Social:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/philosophizethispodcast

X: https://twitter.com/iamstephenwest

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philosophizethisshow

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Episode #236 ... Meditations - Marcus Aurelius

Today we talk about one of Han's earlier books where he offers an alternative to classic western ideas about subjectivity. We talk about Zen as a religion without God. Substance and emptiness. Alternatives to the reified self. Dwelling nowhere. Original friendliness. And death as an event we desperately try to control. Hope you love it! :)

Sponsors:

Better Help: https://www.BetterHelp.com/PHILTHIS

Nord VPN: https://nordvpn.com/philothis

Thank you so much for listening! Could never do this without your help. 

Website: https://www.philosophizethis.org/

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/philosophizethis 

Social:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/philosophizethispodcast

X: https://twitter.com/iamstephenwest

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philosophizethisshow

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Episode #235 ... The Philosophy of Zen Buddhism - Byung Chul Han

Today we try to produce a philosophical guide for the book The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera. We talk about Parmenides, Nietzsche's eternal recurrence, kitsch as something more than just an aesthetic category, existential codes and his animal test of morality. Hope you love it! :)

Sponsors:

ZocDoc: https://www.ZocDoc.com/PHILO

Nord VPN: https://nordvpn.com/philothis

Thank you so much for listening! Could never do this without your help. 

Website: https://www.philosophizethis.org/

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/philosophizethis 

Social:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/philosophizethispodcast

X: https://twitter.com/iamstephenwest

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philosophizethisshow

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Episode #234 ... The Unbearable Lightness of Being - Milan Kundera

Today we talk about two different theories for why we ritualize self-destructive behavior. We check out a lesser-known work from Dostoevsky called The Gambler. We consider how much we can hold people morally accountable for this kind of stuff. Then we look at the work of Georges Bataille, his book The Accursed Share, and how a hidden underlying economics may be a way we can understand self-destructive behavior from a new angle. Hope you love it and have a great week. :)

Sponsors:

Greenlight: https://www.greenlight.com/PT

Nord VPN: https://nordvpn.com/philothis

Better Help: https://www.BetterHelp.com/PHILTHIS

Thank you so much for listening! Could never do this without your help. 

Website: https://www.philosophizethis.org/

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/philosophizethis 

Social:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/philosophizethispodcast

X: https://twitter.com/iamstephenwest

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philosophizethisshow

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Episode #233 ... A philosophy of self-destruction. (Dostoevsky, Bataille)

Today we talk about the book The Crisis of Narration by the philosopher Byung Chul Han. We talk about the history of storytelling. Walter Benjamins distinction between a Paris fire and a revolution in Madrid. The effects of social media on memory. Story telling vs story selling. AI as pure Intelligenz lacking Geist. The ability for stories to give shape to suffering. The importance of boredom for self-discovery. Hope you love it! :)

Sponsors:

Greenlight: https://www.greenlight.com/PT

Better Help: https://www.BetterHelp.com/PHILTHIS

Nord VPN: https://nordvpn.com/philothis 

Thank you so much for listening! Could never do this without your help. 

Website: https://www.philosophizethis.org/

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/philosophizethis 

Social:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/philosophizethispodcast

X: https://twitter.com/iamstephenwest

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philosophizethisshow

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Episode #232 ... Byung Chul Han - The Crisis of Narration

Today we talk about positive power, neoliberalism, narcissism as a reaction to modern life, how technology makes isolation easier, and some tactics to find peace in the digital panopticon. 
 
Get more:
Website: https://www.philosophizethis.org/
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/philosophizethis
 
Be social:
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Thank you for making the show possible. 🙂
 
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Episode #188 ... Achievement Society and the rise of narcissism, depression and anxiety - Byung-Chul Han

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